“So far, the coronavirus has generated a real explosion of our volumes, a 70% increase compared to the same time last year,” reports Maxime de Doncker of Transports Guidez, a refrigerated transporter specialized in fruit and vegetables. The company mainly transports potatoes and endives (50% of the activity), as well as onions and carrots, among other products. 80% of the production comes from the Hauts-de-France.
Transports Guidez is a branch of the Primever group based near Arras (62). The company collects in the Hauts-de-France and then ships and delivers all over France. The company has 500 employees, including 330 truck drivers.
At the moment, the first challenge for the company is to set up the necessary measures, such as respecting a one-meter distance in the waiting areas and making gloves and hydro-alcoholic gel available. “Last Wednesday, we equipped 100% of our workforce again with hydro-alcoholic gel,” reports Maxime.
The second challenge for the transporter is to keep the teams in the best possible working conditions. “Take, for example, our coffee machines. On Thursday, we set up a free coffee distribution by our staff. We are also looking at options to deliver sandwiches to our long-distance drivers, after the closure of some service stations on the highway. In short, we are trying to think of all the possibilities to guarantee the best working conditions for our teams which are really demonstrating a strong mobilization.”
Also on Thursday morning, all 80 regional drivers of Guidez were present to start their shift. “The same goes for our administrative staff and at the docks. We have less than 1% of absenteeism related to Covid-19. Each day represents a new challenge to collect/ship the volumes in order to maintain the food chain.”
For more information:
Guidez
Zone Artoipole
34 Allée De Grande Bretagne
62118 Monchy Le Preux
Phone: +33 (0)3 21 50 65 65
www.reseau-primever.com